Stuffed Pork Chops

I've talked before about comfort food, sharing my favorite recipe for white bread. I love nothing more than a thick slice of toasted white bread with some flavor of berry preserves.

When I've had a long day, though, and I'm starving, toast isn't going to cut it. I want a warm, hearty meal to fill me up.

I want stuffing. I could make an entire meal out of stuffing. One way I control my portion size of stuffing is to, well, stuff it inside the main protein. This works well with both pork and chicken. Served with a side of your favorite vegetables, you have a complete meal.

Make sure you get pretty thick-cut pork chops, so that you have enough room to cut a space for the stuffing. This is a rather "plain" stuffing, so feel free to jazz it up with your choice of herbs — sage, rosemary and/or thyme all pair well with stuffing. Increase the flavor by seasoning the pork with the same herbs you add to the stuffing. Use fresh or dried; just remember that dried herbs have a stronger flavor, so use about a third less of dried herbs than you would fresh.

Stuffed Pork Chops
Adapted from About.com

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp unsalted butter, divided
• ¼ cup chopped onion
• 1 teaspoons dried parsley flakes
• 1 tablespoons finely chopped celery
• 1 tablespoons butter or margarine
• Salt and pepper
• ¼ teaspoon poultry seasoning
• 1 cups soft bread crumbs
• ¼ cup water or broth
• 4 thin boneless end loin pork chops

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. 
2. Make the stuffing: in a large skillet set over medium heat, melt 1 tbsp of the butter. Sauté the onion, parsley and celery. Add salt and pepper to taste, and the poultry seasoning. 
3. Place the bread crumbs in a medium mixing bowl, and pour the onion mixture over top. Add just enough of the water to stuffing to moisten (you may not need the whole ¼ cup). 
4. Place the pork chops on a cutting board, and using a small, thin knife, cut a pocket into one side of each chop, being careful not to cut all the way through to the other side. 
5. Stuff one quarter of the stuffing into each chop. 
6. Line a 9x13 baking dish with tinfoil and spray with non-stick cooking spray. Place each chop in the dish, and cover with another sheet of foil. Bake for 60 to 75 minutes.